Heretofore, telechelic polymers made from dienes had various shortcomings or limitations arising from the polymerization process such as high solution viscosity, high bulk viscosity, high vinyl content which increased with lower molecular weight of the telechelic polymer, and the like. Often, gelation occurred. Such telechelic polymers were generally prepared utilizing only an organopolylithium initiator and a polar solvent to facilitate dissolution.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,278,508 to Kahle et al relates to the polymerization of conjugated dienes such as 1,3-isoprene to form rubbery polymers having a high percentage of cis-1,4-addition product and reduced solution viscosities utilizing an initiator of an organolithium in combination with an organoaluminum compound for producing high molecular weight polymers.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,664,989 to Petrov et al relates to a method of preparing a homopolymer or a copolymer having terminal functional groups from a conjugated diene or optionally with a styrene type monomer having a pre-set molecular weight wherein the polymerization is carried out in the presence of an alkali metal catalyst such as lithium, and a modifier obtained by reacting an alkali metal with a conjugated hydrocarbon and an organoaluminum compound.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,518,753 to Richards et al relates to a process for the anionic polymerization of a conjugated diene in the presence of RLi and a hindered triaryl boron or aluminum derivatives.
British Patent No. 1,294,890 to Petrov et al relates to the production of hydrocarbon polymers containing functional end groups by treating a conjugated diene polymer containing at the chain ends thereof organometallic groups of a metal of Group II or Group III of the Periodic Table but excluding a transitional metal, with a reagent selected from an alkylene oxide, carbon dioxide, oxygen, sulfur, and epichlorohydrin.
An article "Synthesis and Characterization of Functional Diene Oligomers in View of Their Practical Applications," Die Angewandte Makromolekulare Chemie, 70 (1978)9-30 (Nr. 1032), relates to the utilization of various initiators for butadiene oligomerization.
An article "Functionally Terminal Polymers via Anionic Methods," Schulz, Sanda and Willoughby, Chapter 27, Anionic Polymerization, Kinetics, Mechanisms and Synthesis, Symposium Series No. 166, American Chemical Society, Washington, D.C., 1981, relates to reacting monoacetal polybutadienyl lithium with ethylene oxide or carbon dioxide. Dihydroxy or hydroxy-carboxy terminated polymers are produced.